At our Sunday, December 9 called congregational meeting led by District Superintendent Rev. Travis Franklin, our congregation reviewed the resolution to proceed with funding and more detailed planning on the Next90 building expansion project. More than 400 church members were in attendance, and the result of this yes-or-no vote was an overwhelmingly positive 90% yes!

“What an important and historic moment in the life of our church! When we think about who we are, who we have been, and who we will be as a church, we’re always looking forward — discerning as we go how we can best serve,” says Dr. Tim Bruster, Senior Pastor. “This very decisive vote is yet another important step forward for our Church. I especially want to commend the lay leadership and staff of this church, the Building Study Committee, and Barry Hudson in particular, for the hundreds of volunteer hours that have gone into this project so far to get it to this point. We still have a lot of work to do, of course. And, while this is an important milestone in this journey, we need everyone’s participation as we move toward the capital campaign to make this vision a reality.”

With this vote of affirmation, the Building Study Committee became the Building Committee and will now proceed in working with HH Architects to develop the next state of planning, and our Capital Campaign firm, The Culture of Ready, will develop and launch a capital campaign this spring, to be complete by Easter.

“It was GREAT to see such a good turnout for the Church Conference,” says Building Committee Chair Barry Hudson. “The excitement and enthusiasm for the Next90 building program was (and is) very rewarding to the many people involved in shaping this vision for the future of FUMCFW. During the vote counting, I was holding one of my grandsons while we were singing hymns. He was looking around the Sanctuary in wonder. In that spirit-filled moment, I was overwhelmed in thinking about how this project will transform and facilitate fellowship in our church for his generation. Thank you for the mandate to move forward, as we refine the design and move into the capital campaign to move this vision into reality.”

Please watch the Next90 page online (fumcfw.org/Next90) and your FUMCFW Weekly e-news for future updates! For more information or if you have questions, please use our online form or contact Barry Hudson (BHudson@dunawayassociates.com).